Dense circuit matrices typically contain row and column addressed integrated circuits. Addressing locations on dense circuit matrices are applicable to many different devices. For example, dense circuit matrices are often implemented in flat panel displays, charge-coupled devices (CCDs) such as digital cameras, deep space imagery from telescopes, microscopy, memory chips, electronic paper, heated pixel arrays, selective high density radio signal routing, and for selective curing of heat- or electro-sensitive materials. These integrated circuits, as well as many others, typically include trace connections for each coordinate, which, even at moderate complexity levels, require multiple layers of circuitry patterns to ensure isolation of each signal. As such, multiple layers requiring mechanical connections have an increased complexity and incidence of continuity errors.
Accordingly, current technology has been limited in many respects. For example, resolution, size, and profile of array-dependent constructs are limited because of the large amount of components that are required for addressing a location on the dense circuit matrix. A result of these limitations is increased circuit tracing complexity. Moreover, the manufacture of these constructs with moderate to high circuit tracing complexity levels is time-consuming and requires complicated mechanical work and expensive manufacturing equipment.
For example, with regard to display applications, from its earliest inception, the Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) display remained the simplest display platform for graphic displays. In CRT technology, electrons are generated off of a tungsten filament in a vacuum tube, accelerated by a voltage differential through a focusing coil and diverted vertically and horizontally through biased electric fields in a consecutive scanning mode. Radio signals are embedded directly into the synchronized scan mode as time and amplitude modulations and the electrons were decelerated against a screen of various phosphors which convert most of the electron energy into a lighted pixel. CRT displays include a box like bulk, however, that quickly became an unwanted aspect as electronics for radio and computer chassis became smaller.
As transistors became smaller and cheaper to fabricate, the possibility of fabricating miniaturized discrete pixel cells into relatively flat compact architectures became a reality. One of the first means of generating pixels involved the use of a newly exploited property called liquid crystals. The repetitive parallel units in a liquid crystal can be stimulated by electric field lines into linear alignment with the field. When multiple alignments occur as a pixel gate for light, only the light polarization which corresponds with the liquid crystal alignment will be transmitted, orthogonally polarized light being cancelled. In this manner, light and dark areas can be built up into image arrays that represent alphanumeric symbols or other images. Calculators, registers, and games began utilizing reflected light liquid crystal displays (LCDs), to be followed soon by back lit displays, and subsequently color filtered red green blue (RGB) displays. Nematic LCD technology has improved greatly over the last 25 years, with better signal responses and broader emission angles, and has remained competitive with plasma displays.
Plasma displays can be described as thousands of miniature fluorescent light cells that are turned on and off by higher voltage electrodes. In plasma displays, the same gasses used for neon signage are used in tiny isolated micro pixel cells. Plasma displays are fairly efficient but relatively expensive to fabricate. LCDs are slightly cheaper to fabricate but use a larger amount of wattage per lumen because of circuit complexities employing large numbers of solid state transistors. Current losses are also associated with the randomizing and ordering of the liquid crystals themselves. Also, realizing that backlit emission continues whether or not a pixel light gate is open or closed, energy losses become quite significant, especially with small compact portable devices such as laptop computers.
Several new approaches to simplifying the efficiencies of flat panel displays are currently being researched. Organic light-emitting diodes can be miniaturized by several common printing techniques. However, problems due to complexity and transistor energy losses still remain as an upper limit.
The subject matter claimed herein is not limited to embodiments that solve any particular disadvantages or that operate only in particular environments such as those described herein. Rather, such environments and disadvantages are provided only to illustrate examples of technology areas in which several embodiments may be practiced.